Ready To Love Again
by Katheryn Mae
Summary: Cuddy is over Lucas after he cheats on her, but does she want to chase after House just get her heart broken again? Huddy. Songfic.


_Ready to Love Again _

Lyrics by Lady Antebellum

Summary: Cuddy is over Lucas after he cheats on her, but does she want to chase after House just get her heart broken again? Huddy. Songfic.

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Cuddy stared after the door as it shut, her breathing still heavy, as if she had just run a mile. Tears stained her cheeks and her eyes were bloodshot from crying so hard. She swallowed hard, taking a deep breath, hearing the car motor start and roar to life. Locking the door, she leaned against it, closing her eyes as more tears slipped down her cheeks. She had never expected her and Lucas' relationship to end like this; of course she wanted to end it, but not this way.

_Seems like I was walking in the wrong direction_; _I barely recognize my own reflection, no; s__cared of love but scared of life alone_

Cuddy hugged herself, leaning against the cold wooden door, her sobs raking her body as she cried. After all this time they had been together, she never expected that he would lie to her, to cheat on her; and expect her to take him back. Sure, she knew it was what would happen after he had told her, but she wouldn't have it, he didn't deserve her trust; and she wondered if he ever had.

_Seems I've been playing on the safe side baby; b__uilding walls around my heart to save me, oh_ . B_ut it's time for me to let it go_

House had been the first to figure it out, as usual, but he didn't laugh at her, or mock her like she expected. He just listened as she told him and Wilson how it had all unfolded. And, when Wilson had gone, and she was upset, House had held her awkwardly in his arms when she cried. When Wilson had returned, they watched him give them a weak smile, which meant something different to each of them. To Cuddy, it was one of encouragement, that she had to stay strong. But to House, it was a thankful one, that he was there for Cuddy when she needed him the most.

_Yeah, I'm ready to feel now; n__o longer am I afraid of the fall down_

It was the way House treated Cuddy as soon as he head heard about her and Lucas, that made her smile again. His comforting nature, that barely anyone knew, supported her, and wordlessly supported her. His arms around her, comforting her, made all the difference; that she could go on.

_It must be time to move on now_ , w_ithout the fear of how it might end;_ _I guess I'm ready to love again_

For the first few months after she had ended it with Lucas, Cuddy and House became closer, as they had been before he had left for Mayfield. It was as if they had set the book aside and suddenly decided to open up to their bookmark and resume reading the story. Or, in their case, keep writing it. This time, for both of them, it wasn't only a story of friendship, it was a story of love and hardship between them.

_Just when we think that love will never find you_ , y_ou runaway but still it's right behind you, oh_ i_t's just something that you can't control_

It hadn't been much after Rachel's second birthday, when House showed up on her doorstep, a small dreidel-shaped cake in one hand, two wrapped packages in the other. Surprised, Cuddy let him in, and he sat by the fire, where Rachel and she been curled up. And after Rachel was put to bed, House and Cuddy stayed up late talking, enjoying one another's company. It was after House had left, when Cuddy smiled to herself, seeing the two packages he had brought for her and Rachel. Leaving Rachel's, she opened hers, finding a beautiful silver necklace with a pendant on it. A heart pendant. After putting it on, she had also noticed a note, scrawled in House's handwriting.

_To the one who means the most to me. _

_Happy Holidays Lisa. _

_x_

_Greg_

_Yeah, I'm ready to feel now_ _No longer am I afraid of the fall down_

The next day, Cuddy woke with a smile, still wearing the necklace House had left for her, and she went off to work with a smile. House was waiting in her office, and when she entered, he smiled too. "You like it?" He asked, not surprised that she did. "Of course," Cuddy smiled, hugging him gently, "Thank you."

_It must be time to move on now_ , w_ithout the fear of how it might end; __I guess I'm ready to love again_

House hugged her, happy to have her near him, and most of all, happy to have her as his. He pulled back from the hug, just holding Cuddy in his arms. Wanting to tell her how he felt was either now or never. "Cuddy?" House began, "I'm sorry about everything you've been through. I mean, with Lucas, your job, life in general...and I want o be there for you."

_So come and find me;_ _I'll be waiting up for you._ _I'll be holding out for you tonight_

"Err, thanks?" Cuddy looked up at him, still wrapped in his arms, "But you need to let me go, I think you have a job to do." "Not right now," House looked her in the eye, "The only job I want at this very moment is to make sure that you're happy." He hesitated for a few seconds, before bending down, kissing her lips gently. "Whatever that means for you; for us."

_Yeah, I'm ready to feel now, n__o longer am I afraid of the fall down, i__t must be time to move on now. W__ithout the fear of how it might end_ .

Cuddy looked at him, her eyes brimming with tears of joy, and she hugged him again, resting her cheek against his shoulder; completely happy for the first time in nearly two years.

_I guess I'm ready, I'm ready to love again._

**Fin.**

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**AN: Please review, I'm extremely pissed off at right now, because they completely screwed up the formating on here, so I had to copy/paste the whole thing into my liejournal, format it there, then paste the HTML in here. **

**All in all, it took about an hour just to format the thing.**

**Anyways, thanks for reading! Reviews?**

**x**


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